Card-index apparatus



Sept. 11, 1923.

- R. J. DAVIES CARD INDEX APPARATUS Filed Sept. 17 1921 Patented Sept. 11, 1923.

UNIT ED s5mrats was? RALPH J; DAVIES, or' nenrronn, oonnncr onr. I

CARD I-NDEX APPARATUS Application filed: September 17, 1921. Serial No. 501,261.

To all whomit may concern:

Be it known; that I, RALPH J. DAvrEs, a;

description of the invention,, such as will enable others-1 skilled in: the art to" which. it-

appertains. to" make and: use the same.

This invention. relates to cardindexes,

' Principal objects. of the invention are-to increase theipossibilities of'classificationw1th rectangular index: cards by exposing to: view two adj acentiedgesao'fiieachrcard. ina drawer or other holder, thereby exposinggreater length- 0f car-d edge" for receiving'signal or indicator tabs: as: compared with: the usual practice ofexposing; one: edge for this purpose; and to facilitate the removal? of any desired card;

The invention consists in a card holder adapted to hold a" series of: inderr cards obliquely: on two adjacent edges leaving the other two-adjacent edges fully exposedpin index cards having sigma-1 tabs on two ad acent edges, and in the combinations andfeatui'es' of construction-more specifically set forth in the ensuing description, definedflin the appended'claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In: thedrawings in which likereference characters indicate like parts. throughout the several: views:

Figure 1 is a perspective-of acard-drawer made a in: accordance: with this 1 invention;

Figure 2' is a front elevation of a: cabinet containing a plurality of drawers or holders like'thatshownin Figure 1;-

Figure 3v is; a. cross section through a drawer containing square index cards F'guree is a: perspectivepf av holder filled with oblong index: cards; and square separator cards, the" front: of'the holder: having beenzremoved I Figure 5 is a sectionzthrougha deskholder. embodying the invention;

The embodiment." of thez-invention specificallyx illustrated: and described: herein involves-s a holderrhavingr two parallel longitudinal: card-supporting? members having their fldsillllltd? to front" and" rear cross members; respectively This; holder may be so formedtas to": restruponfitidBS'kiOlff'OthGl' support, and sustain rettarig-111all cardswi h two adjacent edges respectively sustained by? the two longitudinal card-supporting;

members:,each card occupying a position with its-edges atoblique angles'with respect toa horizontal plane,and exposing, to view its other twoadj acentedges'. I have; in Figures 1 to 4, shown the cardholder inthe form of a drawer having a .body'of V-shape, a square front panel with a-handle onits front" side and a similar square back, said drawer'adapted' toslide in 'a'fcabi net providedwith' guides soconstructed as to hold andv guide 1 said "drawers: with the diagonals of the square front and back parallel with the sides and bottomof: the

cabinet, or the apex of the ,V-drawer' directed toward the base, the" fronts of the drawers making a lozenge'pattern, orpattern" of oblique rectangles. In Figureaisshowna cross section of a-holder ada'ptedntorest on a" desk or table. Followers, .(not shown), may be used if found desirable accordingto common practice in card indexes, In: F igures 1 to 41" numeral l indicates a card-'holding'drawer having i parallel longitudinal-'1 cardr supports 2, illustrated as bars: or strips having plane faces arranged at 90 to each other so that the lower corner of a rectangularcard having adjacent edges resti'ng thereon will de-' pendbetween said bars, a perpendicular falling midway between the bars" intersecting: the corner ofthe card The front ends of the card-supportingbarsvfl are secured to a: rectangular front panel 3 which occu= ples 'ae transverse-plane perpendicular to the bars2; Thezrear'end's of'saidbars are similarly connected 'torectangular or other suitable form of back 4; In theform showninthese views side walls-5am secured to adjacent edges Wanda of-theififontl3 and b'a'clct and may be also-'secured tothecard supporting'bars' 2, thus forming a drawer of trough shapethe sides of which; form an angle of: 90. Bars 2 are disposed equidis tanttfornithevjunction of sides 5.] Theisitles 5'serve as :guides'for keepingithe drawertrue while sliding the: ways of; cabinet I G; "and also preventca: card froiniaccidentlyrslipping throughsai drawer. :To: the: front si'd'ei of the frontspanelaB azhand'le =T may ibei se'cured.

v The index cards to be; held; imthercard holden may be; square, as; illustrated"; in: Fig; ure 3, or: rectangularohlongs,;asfindicated; in Figure-4; v When-square: cards-68' are rused two-1- edges 9, QELTOIE: equal-.- length are exposed to thereye' whemtheiholder is partiallywitlii drawn from the cabinet or rests upon a table or desk. By reason of the increased length of exposed edge compared with the length of edge exposed in the ordinary card index many more index or'signal tabs 10, 11, may be attached to a series of cards so that. an increased number of subjects may be classified. The cards may be arranged in a double classification, the tabs 10 on one edge indicating one classification and the tabs 11 on theother edge another. Books, for example, may be classified according to subject matter by tabs 10 on one edge and according to language by tabs 11; for-example, along the margin adjacent edge 9 characters 12 indicating "history, philosophy, science, fiction and poetry may be printed, and a tab 10 affixed in position appropriate to the subject matter on the card, while characters 13 indicating languages as French, English, German, Spanish, Italian, may be printed along the margin adjacent-the edge 9 and a tab affixed in position appropriate to the language in which the indexed book is written. Thus, by glancing along the line of tabs on one side all books on history, for example, can be selected, and by glancing along the lines of tabs on the other edge all books in the French language. Similarly an indefinite number of other double classifications may be provided for, as the occupation and sex of employees;the.names and residences of customers; the subject matter of legal decisions and the courts, whether Federal or State, by whom the decisions were rendered.

Iii-Figure 4L the rectangular index cards 18 are oblong, some of a series being inclined 90 to the others. By such an arrangement plural classificationsmay be conveniently had in. one holder. For example, subject matter in'an index of legal decisions may form the basis of the major classification, and'the nature of the courts from which the decisions are derived, another. Cards bearing State court decisions may be indicated to the right and those bearing Federal court decisions to the left. This arrangement, it will be :obvious, lends itself to convenient classification on any two bases of classification. In this form square separating cards 19 may be used to advantage, a small square corner section of a separation card being exposed at the space 20 formed by the crossed index cards. 1. Index cards 18 of dimensions 4 x 6" are a convenient size for use. With cards of this sizea 6" square separator card would expose a two inch square at the corner space between the two sets of oppositely inclined index cards for the reception of indicia 21.indicating subdivision of major classification, (illustrated as an alphabetical classification in Figure 4:). Thus, the index cards may be'separated by'the separators 19 into groups of surnames in accordance with the initial letter thereof, and may be .fur-

ther separated into native born and foreign born by the position of the cards, those inclined tothe right bearing information relative to native born population and those to the left relative'to foreign born. The signal tabs 22, 23 may be positioned on the cards so as to indicate other facts.

In the desk holder illustrated in Figure 5, 2 indicates the parallel members for engaging the lower adjacentedges of a series of index cards and 24 indicates a plane bottom for sustaining the holder on a desk with two adjacent edges of the cards exposed to'view.

for indexing purposes. I By supporting the cards on narrow, parallel card-supporting members a any card or group of cards may be pushed downward on one edge, and thus caused to sway or shift its position slightly'about an axis perpendicular to the card, depressing the edge or edges with respect to adj acentcards, so that separation of a group by the fingers may be easily efiected, -or any card or group of cards may be" readily grasped and removed. This 1 characteristic facilitates handling and selecting as compared with the usual card index in which the cards rest in a rectangular box with exposed edges in one plane, and not susceptible of being displaced edgewise with 5 respect to each other.

The front panels of the drawers may be right squares, as indicated in dotted lines in Fig.3, instead of oblique squares as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Right square panels support the'drawers in proper position, should they be placed upon a desk, although requiring'alarger cabinet. 1 I

Having described. my invention in the form now bestknown to me, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is: i

1. In a card index apparatus, a card holder, in combination with substantially rectanw gular index cards and means for sustaining said cards on edge transversely of theholder with two adjacent edges fully exposed and lying oblique-to ahorizontal plane. "2. In a card index apparatus, a card index holder, in combination with substantially rectangular index cards and means for sustaining said index cards transversely of the holderso that they may be rocked edgewise and moved along said means in a direction normal to theirufaces in contact with said means, the edges of said cards lying oblique to a horizontal plane.

3. In a card index apparatus, a card holder havingparallel spaced card-sustaining members, in combination with substantially rectangular index cards suspended edgewise onsaid members, transversely thereof, said members engaging adjacent 4. In a card index apparatus, a card holder having parallel spaced card-sustaining members having surfaces disposed at right angles to each other, in combination with substantially rectangular index cards resting edgewise on said members transversely thereof, said members engaging adj acent edges of the cards near opposite corners thereof.

5. In a card index apparatus, a holder having means to engage and guide index cards, in combination with substantially rectangular oblong index cards and means for sustaining them on edge transversely of the holder with two adjacent edges exposed and lying oblique to a horizontal plane.

6. In a card index apparatus, a card index holder having means to engage and guide index cards, in combination with substantially rectangular oblong index cards sustained on edge transversely of the holder with two adjacent edges exposed, and a square separating card having one side equal in length to the long side of the index cards.

7 In a card index apparatus, a card holder comprising a drawer having V-shaped sides adapted to sustain index cards transversely between them and a rectangular front panel, in combination with a cabinet in which said drawer slides, said cabinet holding the drawer with the apex of its sides directed toward the base of the cabinet.

8. In a card index apparatus, a card ho1der comprising a drawer having V-shaped sides, and offset, parallel card-guiding members on said sides disposed equidistant from the junction of said sides.

In testimony whereof I have afiixed my signature this 17 day of June, 1922.

RALPH J. DAVIES. 

